When A Leader Is Demystified In Power

By Okey Ndiribe

A recent attack on President Muhammadu Buhari’s convoy in Kano is a clear sign of rejection by the youths of the ancient city. Coming shortly after a similar incident in his home state of Katsina, it sends a signal of regional resentment against a leader who enjoyed a massive personality cult-following at the beginning of his  tenure eight years ago. 

These seeming acts of rebellion on the part of a once docile populace -which gave him over 12 million votes during the 2015 presidential election-appear to be a direct response to the President’s recent self-award of a pass mark to his administration. Buhari’s remark which was made in Bauchi had elicited a huge controversy among Nigerians. One had thought that was the end of the matter.

However, against the background of recent happenings across the country- especially the chaotic situation engendered by the on-going currency redesign exercise and the pains arising from the lingering fuel scarcity- these violent protests by a frustrated segment of the population seem to be the people’s riposte to the President’s Bauchi declaration. 

Nigerians in both the Northern and Southern regions of the country cannot forget Buhari’s Messianic campaign promises when he was seeking for the nation’s top job. I think these attacks on Buhari convey an unmistakable message: that the masses have rejected the passmark the President awarded himself. As a matter of fact, it is very likely that the masses rate  the present government very low in terms of concrete performance.

In 2015, it would be recalled that the President anchored his campaign promises on a three point agenda namely: Improved security, economic emancipation and eradication of corruption. Today, an evaluation of the performance of the present administration based on this three-point agenda shows that the Buhari leadership did not live up to expectation. 

For instance, the President’s performance in tackling insecurity which has ravaged all nooks and crannies of the country these past eight years is very poor. The reasons for Buhari’s dismal performance in this critical sector are legion. A survey carried out last year indicated that about 6,000 Nigerians were killed between 2015 and 2022. Most of these Killings were carried out by terrorists, bandits and other merchants of death who have unleashed mayhem across the length and breadth of Nigeria. 

In addition to this, large swathes of territory have been overrun by terrorists in  the country’s North-West and North-East. Within this period, other criminals masquerading as herdsmen have invaded and massacred local residents in uncountable communities scattered across all the 36 states of the country. Early last year, a band of terrorists bombed a train plying the Abuja-Kaduna rail route and kidnapped scores of passengers who spent about eight months in captivity.

While all this was happening, the Armed Forces and security agencies seemed to be on holidays. In fact, in several cases military and security personnel were accused of collaboration with the criminals perpetrating havoc against the citizens.

On the economic front, the indices are also bleak. Under Buhari’s watch, Nigeria which is the fifth largest producer of crude oil in the world, displaced India as the poverty capital of the world. After a recent survey, the National Bureau of Statistics found out that 133 million Nigerians were multidimensionally poor. Youth unemployment figures have risen astronomically in the last eight years and is believed to have contributed significantly to the EndSARS protest which rocked major cities of the nation in 2020. 

The rate of inflation has been mind-boggling. Contrary to Buhari’s campaign promise that he would make one Naira exchange for one US Dollar, the parallel market exchange rate today stands at about N750 against the Dollar.

The price of fuel and foodstuff have climbed through the roof. 

Buhari’s declaration of war against corruption at the inception of his government has effectively grinded to a halt. This happened after the likes of Senator Danjuma Goje who was facing trial for alleged corruption during his tenure as Governor of Gombe State was let off the hook after the Economic And Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, withdrew the charges against him from the court.

Goje who ran for the position of Senate President was believed to have benefitted from a deal between him and the Presidency which culminated in his stepping down for Ahmed Lawan to emerge as the  President of the Red Chamber in 2019.

Another indication that the anti-corruption war had been reduced to a ruse emerged last year after the Presidency granted state pardon to two ex-governors who were serving jail sentences for corruption. Former Governor of Plateau State, Joshua Dariye and his Taraba State counterpart, Rev. Jolly Nyame, are free men today courtesy of an administration which is supposed to be fighting the societal malaise. 

Few years ago, the case against Abdullahi Ganduje, the serving Governor of Kano State who was caught by a secret camera stuffing his flowing danchiki robe with foreign currency alleged to be bribe was quickly swept under the carpet. The State House of Assembly which attempted to probe the allegation was pressurised into silence while the EFCC looked the other way.

Rather, the anti-corruption agency has been contented to fix its gaze on small time fraudsters called Yahoo Yahoo Boys in local parlance. But the high and mighty are allowed to enjoy their loot in peace.

*Ndiribe is a commentator on public issues